Tags: Crustacean.
Ostracods or ostracodes are a class of the Crustacea (class Ostracoda) sometimes known as seed shrimp. Some 70000 species (only 13000 of which are extant) have been identified grouped into several orders. They are small crustaceans typically around 1 mm (0.039 in) in size but varying from 0.2 to 30 mm (0.0079 to 1.1811 in) in the case of Gigantocypris. Their bodies are flattened from side to side and protected by a bivalve-like chitinous or calcareous valve or shell.
